An example of a bearing roller of this kind is known from U.S. Pat. No. 9,127,649. The roller is equipped with a sensor that detects a physical state of the bearing roller, which sensor is attached to an inner surface of the roller bore, which defines a cavity. A signal from the sensor is received by a processing portion, which processes and transmits the detection signal to a receiver outside of the bearing. The processing portion is provided on a substrate accommodated within the bore cavity, whereby a substrate retaining material is interposed between the sensor and the substrate. The retaining material may be an elastomeric material that is poured into the bore cavity in liquid state and then cured.
Due to a “chewing motion” inside the roller bore, there is a risk that the elastomer material will become detached from the inner surface of the bore and that this will cause strain on, if not rupture of, the electrical connections between the sensor element and processing electronics. A method to fixate the electronics with respect to the bore is disclosed in DE102012200779.
There is still room for improvement.